A COUPLE who swapped their life of running an off-licence for a career in the fast lane have seen their dreams come true.

Bill and Jenny Conway, from Dutton, decided to set up their own business to design and build the world's first Formula 1-style sports car which can legally be driven on public roads.

Developed on a shoestring budget, the car, which they are planning to manufacture and sell for around £24,500, was a dream that Bill, originally from Runcorn and a former rally car builder, had nurtured for years - until one day his wife vowed to make his dream a reality.

They sold their off-licence business in North-wich, remortgaged their home and set about establishing Dragon Sportscars.

'We had the off-licence for about six-and-a-half years,' said Bill, 42, a technical wizard who spent 20 years building high-performance rally cars for some of the biggest names in the sport.

'Managing the development of the car and the off-licence was tough at first until we sold it - we have been concentrating solely on the car for the last year.'

But he said the gamble had already paid off, with the couple inundated with potential customers from all over the world.

The Dragon F1r sports car has a top speed of 130mph and is capable of accelerating from 0-60mph in just 3.5 seconds. It looks and even sounds like a speed machine with a high revving engine that reaches, yet does not break, the legal sound limit.

'It is the ultimate big boy's toy,' said Jenny, commercial director of the company. 'Men just can't help themselves drooling over this dream machine.'

The hand-built machine was officially unveiled at the Autosport International show at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham earlier this month.

The major difference between the F1r and a true Formula 1 is that the Dragon sports car has two seats instead of one. It also offers a choice of two engine units, 900cc or 1100cc, developing 135bhp.

'The response has been excellent, from all over the world,' said Bill.

'There has been a lot of interest from racing driving schools, as instructors can sit side by side with their pupils. At the moment they have to sit behind their students and all they can see whilst going around the track is a blur.

'We also had a lot of interest from a corporate point of view.'

The couple will build all their cars at their workshop at Little Budworth, close to the Oulton Park racing circuit.

The cars will be built in-house and they aim to build about 12 cars a year to order.

'The tyres we will be using have been specially made for us in Japan, and were shown for the first time at Autosport International.

'Some people asked us whether the car is available in team colours.

'We have contacted a few teams to see if this is possible.'

Bill and Jenny are hoping to organise track days around the country, including some at Oulton Park, so customers can experience the thrill of riding in their super machine.

'We knew our market had to be the young, affluent motor enthusiast who wants to drive something very different,' explained Bill.

'My experience in the rally car industry had given me the knowledge I needed to build powerful performance vehicles.

'The challenge with the F1r, however, was to produce something that was as near as possible to the Formula 1 experience yet was within the reasonable price range and capable of being driven on a highway.